Photo: Skye Marthaler · CC BY-SA 4.0Northwest Florida State College is 14.1 miles from Mary Esther
No college sits inside Mary Esther’s boundary, but Northwest Florida State College’s campus in Niceville, with 3,456 students on campus, is 14.1 miles from the center of town, and Gulf Coast State College is 57.7 miles away in Panama City. About 3% of Mary Esther’s residents are enrolled in college, below Florida (6%).
From the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard, June 2026; IPEDS fall 2023 enrollment) and the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, 2020–24. Straight-line distances from the center of Mary Esther. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Mary Esther
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Mary Esther
It is public. Every other college is more than 15 miles from Mary Esther.
Degree-granting colleges with 100 or more students on campus (fall 2023 enrollment, minus students who study only online). Admitted: share of applicants offered a place. Net price: the average a year after grants, for students on federal aid. Graduate: within 6 years (4-year colleges) or 3 (2-year). Earnings: median, 10 years after starting.
What would your family pay?
The average a year after grants, for families on federal aid, at the colleges within 15 miles. Pick your family’s income.
Starts at $75–110k, where Mary Esther’s median household income ($76,890) falls.
The average a year after grants and scholarships, for first-time, full-time students on federal aid, from the College Scorecard. Your own price depends on your aid package; every college has a net price calculator. For community colleges the net price counts housing and food at full cost, so tuition is shown beside it. “—”: not reported for that income.
Do students finish, and does it pay?
Each dot is a college within 15 miles of Mary Esther: across is the share who graduate, up is what they earn ten years after starting.
Graduation: first-time, full-time students within 6 years (4-year colleges) or 3 years (2-year). Earnings: median, 10 years after starting, for students who got federal aid.
Questions about college near Mary Esther
Is Mary Esther a college town?
No. About 3 of every 100 Mary Esther residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), below Florida (6). The nearest campus, Northwest Florida State College, is 14.1 miles away in Niceville.
What colleges are near Mary Esther?
Within 15 miles: Northwest Florida State College (14.1 miles, 3,456 students on campus).
What is the closest community college to Mary Esther, and what does it cost?
Gulf Coast State College in Panama City, 57.7 miles away. Tuition and fees are $2,370 a year for Florida residents; the federal net price, $4,709, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does Northwest Florida State College cost if we live in Florida?
Tuition and fees are $2,583 a year in-state and $10,612 from out of state. After grants, families on federal aid paid an average of $3,683 (under $30,000 income) to $8,717 (over $110,000), housing and food included.
Neighbors talk college
Students, parents, alumni and the neighbors next door.
Colleges: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard and IPEDS (Scorecard 06/10/2026 · IPEDS 2024 · fall 2023 enrollment). “On campus” is fall enrollment minus students who study only online. Distances are straight-line from the center of Mary Esther. Residents in college, age, rent and poverty (including poverty without college students, table B14006): U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–24. Colleges are described, not graded; the College town label marks towns where 15% or more of residents are enrolled. How TownRatings describes colleges →